Feature: Hannes Bieger [Interview] + Undrgrnd pres. Beatfreak Recordings @ ADE

As one of Europe’s most in-demand mixing engineers Hannes Bieger spent a decade cultivating an untouchable reputation, with an exhaustive client list that includes some of the biggest names in contemporary house and techno. In 2017 Hannes decided to step back into the foreground and return to making his own music again, emboldened by years of studio experience, a renewed zest for production and a lifelong romance with electronic music. Since then he has made quite an impact; picking up a series of releases with highly influential labels, and traveling across Europe and South America to perform live. One of his most recent cuts, ‘Stars’, which dropped on John Digweed’s Bedrock label, hit the No.1 spot in Beatport’s Progressive House chart. An impressive list of achievements in a very short space of time, and it’s just the beginning...

Hi Hannes, thanks for sitting with us today! You are a music producer, a mixing engineer, an electronic music live actor… Tell us how do you manage to be so successful in all that you are doing and how do you handle everything?

Thanks for having me! This is a tough question… I think there are two factors defining what I am doing today. First of all I have been around for a while, so there was plenty of time for me to gain experience in different fields, and I am also not satisfied easily, always striving to improve my game. The latter can be difficult at times. If you don’t challenge yourself you will not move forward, but if you’re too hard on yourself you might just throw in the towel at some point. Many artists seem to struggle with decisions, which I think is completely natural. However, through my studio work, I have adopted a good routine making decisions – on every work day I have mixing or production clients in which want to leave with great results in the evening. This routine seems to help me a lot with my own productions. I move fast these days, not wasting too much time overthinking matters. If something is good I’ll know it soon enough. Last thing is my analogue setup: I typically record longer passages with my synths, especially the modulars, so there is not too much time consuming editing necessary. But I agree – it’s a challenge, and without time off on weekends or holidays I wouldn’t be able to keep the pace. Besides, I’m really in it for the love of music, and that energy keeps me going all the time!

We have all seen the astonishing studio you have. What led you down the path of creating it?

Even as a guitarist in high school bands in the 90s I was very much interested in sound already. When I started producing tracks it was always clear to me I wanted to be able to have a good workspace where I could do my stuff. At the time it never occurred to me that someone else could potentially engineer my productions, so I gradually built my studio to suit my needs. Almost 20 years after I moved to Berlin and went freelance as a music producer, this is where I’m at now. My studio is the result of a long process which went to countless beautiful but also very painful steps, costly mistakes, happy accidents along the way. But I’m grateful it seems to be a very inspiring place not only for me but for other artists as well. The result of countless hours logged at the helm, constantly evolving…

You have been invited by Carl Cox to one of the best clubs in the world – Fabrik in Madrid, for his 12 hours event. How do you feel about that?

The two years since I revived my career as an artist, after focusing exclusively on behind the scenes studio work for over 11 years, have been quite a ride so far, and it is very exciting for me to see how things are moving on right now. In these two years I have had several releases very high in the Beatport charts, including a Progressive House #1, since a few months I am working with Analog agency for worldwide representation, and now, only a year after I played my first techno live set ever, I am playing the first large festival – invited by Carl Cox. This feels like fast forward indeed, and I am super thrilled to take the next steps. In a way I am grateful, because I am way past the point I thought I would ever reach many years ago when I started out, but I also know it’s the result of hard work, and probably a bit of luck as well.

The well established Spanish Beatfreak Recordings will be holding its showcase at ADE this year. You have been invited as a headliner among other great artists such as the label boss himself D-Formation, Teenage Mutants and Citizen Kain. How do you feel about this invitation?

I admire Beatfreak for their quality and consistency. The two main labels I have been working with so far, Poker Flat and Bedrock, have a long history, too. There is something special about labels which did not only survive for so long, but also managed to stay relevant, on top of their game. I am looking forward to share the stage with these incredible artists, and I have the feeling this could very well be the beginning of a more intense, fruitful relationship!

Tell us when and where the event will be held?

The night will take place at John Doe club with prjct Undrgrnd in Amsterdam, which looks like a very nice venue. This will be my final show at ADE this year, and after the Bedrock showcase and my Awakenings debut at the Awesome Soundwave showcase, I am excited to play in a more intimate club as well. I love the energy exchange in general, the feedback loop between stage and crowd, and there is something special about clubs with a booth very close to the dancefloor. I’m sure it’s going to be a great night and I can’t wait to be there!

What can we expect from you in the near future?

I have just finished the mastering of my first ever album I will release as “Hannes Bieger”. It’s slated for release next spring on Awesome Soundwave, a label run by Carl Cox and Christopher Coe, that focuses exclusively on productions by live acts. Now that the album is finished I can’t wait to show it to everyone! I also did a collab with the incredible Ursula Rucker for the album, and this track will also be released as an EP prior to the whole package. Besides this I’m sure I will return to my regular labels at some point, I am working on a couple remixes, and there is more stuff I can’t talk about just yet. This year has been my most productive so far, I have finished over 15 tracks already. And of course I will further ramp up my live show. The next months will continue to be an exciting time, but first and foremost I am now focusing on the great events ahead in Madrid and Amsterdam!

Hannes will be playing @ADE x Undrgrnd presents Beatfreak Recordings! More info: https://www.facebook.com/events/348684332677177/

D-Formation´s Beatfreak Recordings & projct UNDRGRND, in collaboration with Late AM Records & John Doe Club presents you: This is Beatfreak!

The Spanish label for high quality electronic music will be back again this year for its second showcase at ADE for a great 10 hour journey. We will enjoy the night from 10pm till 07am. Katalist and SHDW will be opening then followed up by b2b set from EdOne & GRAZZE. Going on with Lonya b2b Kamilo Sanclemente, Matchy b2b Wally Lopez. One of the sublime moments will be the live performance of the German unique artist Hannes Bieger followed up by progressive-melodic undergound back to back set from D-Formation & Citizen Kain and right after the pure melodic techno session from Teenage Mutants. The Portugues well known DJ and producer Carlos Manaca will continue with his techno line and Alex Sharp will be closing the night. Once again the event and the concept will bring us joy and happiness  considering the stunning line up. Beatfreak will rock Amsterdam on October 19th. Get ready!